E-pistle for August 27, 2010
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E-pistle
Dr. Dan Hite, President FreeWay Foundation August 27, 2010
"Are you a king?"
(John 18:1-40)
Dr. Curt Scarborough
I. Concentration: on the contents of this chapter
1. Jesus was betrayed and arrested in Gethsemane, vv. 1-11.
2. Jesus was tried before the High Priest, vv. 12-14, 19-24.
3. Peter denied Jesus three times, vv. 15-18, 25-27.
4. Jesus was tried before Pilate, vv. 28-40.
II. Observations: on the fact that all four gospels record this question of Pilate
1. Matthew 27:11
2. Mark 15:2
3. Luke 23:3
4. John 18:33
III. Meditation: on Jesus' answer to Pilate's question
1. Yes . . . "It is as you say," in the synoptic gospels and John 18:37.
2. Jesus asked Pilate, "Is this a personal inquiry, or merely academic?"
3. "My kingdom is not of this world." (His realm is spiritual).
4. "For this cause I was born." (Lineage was David's line.)
5. "My servants . . . " v. 36. (His subjects are believers and angels.)
6. "You could have no power at all against Me unless it had been given you
from above," John 19:11. (This refers to Jesus' power and authority.)
7. A king's words are low:
· To be respected as truth, and
· To be obeyed as commands
IV. Revelation: on the requests of kingship
1. A king must have a royal lineage.
2. A king must have a realm, a territory to rule.
3. A king must have subjects, which he provides for.
4. A king must have authority, backed up by power.
V. Applications: as a Christian, I need to acknowledge
1. Jesus is King of Kings and Lord of Lords of the universe.
2. Jesus is King and Lord of my life and my ministry.
3. I am subject to His will; He supplies my needs.
4. He speaks the words of truth and life; I must obey Him.
LOYALTY TO ROYALTY
Hail, King Jesus, Lord and Master
You were born to royalty.
We, Your subjects, bow before You;
Pledging love and loyalty.
Unfinished Business
(John 19:1-42)
Dr. Curt Scarborough
I. Concentration: on the contents of this chapter
1. The soldier mocked Jesus; Pilate sentenced Him to die, vv. 1-16.
2. Jesus was crucified, vv. 17-24.
3. Jesus provided for His mother; He cried "It is finished!" vv. 25-30.
4. After His death, His side was pierced and He was buried, vv. 31-42.
II. Meditation: on the implications of Jesus' words, "It is finished!" (v. 30)
1. Sacrifice had been offered.
2. Suffering had been endured.
3. Scripture had been fulfilled.
4. Salvation had been purchased.
(Yet, Jesus gave His disciples The Great Commission (Matthew 28:18-20:
so we have a part in completing His "unfinished business.)
III. Observations: on Old Testament characters who left "unfinished business"
1. Moses: to lead Israel into the promised Land.
2. Joshua: to conquer all the Canaanites.
3. David: to build a temple in Jerusalem.
4. Elijah: to carry out the three assignments given to him by God.
I Kings 19:15-16
IV. Revelation: on why these men left "unfinished business"
1. Moses, the lawgiver, disobeyed God, blamed others, and committed
the sin of presumption, Deuteronomy 34:1-7.
2. Joshua, the warrior, grew old and fatigued, and he retired too soon
(at age 110), Joshua 13:1; 24:29.
3. David, the king, was frustrated and disappointed because God did not
allow him to build the temple. But David was unsuited in temperament
and gifting, and he was unfit because of his violence and blood-shedding,
I Chronicles 17:11-14; 22:7-8.
4. Elijah, the prophet, accomplished only one of God's three assignments
during his lifetime, but his successors completed those tasks, I Kings 19:19;
II Kings 8:13; II Kings 9:6.
V. Applications: as a Christian, I need to understand that
1. Disobedience (Moses), physical weakness (Joshua), character flaws (David),
or God's purpose to fulfill destiny through others we have influenced (Elijah),
. . . all these can produce "unfinished business" in our lives and ministries.
2. Even the Son of God needed others to complete His mission on earth . . . "to
seek and to save the lost," Luke 19:10.
3. Only rarely does a person complete his God-given destiny during his lifetime;
most believers "see" more than they can "do."
4. Each of these men had associates to whom they "passed on the torch" . . . to
complete the task which God had given to them to accomplish. We need to
mentor a "Timothy" to assume our tasks when we are gone.
"No love, no friendship can cross the path of our destiny
without leaving some mark on it forever."
--Francois Mauriac
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